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The City Trade-Off

THE RENTERS Abhishek Shanbog and Geetha Siddappa in their studio apartment in Yorkville, on the far Upper East Side.Credit
Katherine Marks for The New York Times

Two years ago, Geetha Siddappa, a senior business analyst for a software company, was transferred from her home in Bangalore, India, to Iowa for work. It was a move that excited Ms. Siddappa and her husband, Abhishek Shanbog, who met a decade ago while working at a call center.

They lived in a two-bedroom apartment in West Des Moines with a balcony, dishwasher and washer-dryer, in a complex with a gym and pool, for which they paid around $1,050 a month.

But “we both were brought up in city culture, and living in West Des Moines was a letdown,” Mr. Shanbog said. Though neighboring Des Moines is the state’s capital, it seemed to shut down on weekends, he added: “We had imagined it would be crowded and superfun, but it was the opposite of that.”

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Their studio is in a seven-story building with a laundry room.Credit
Katherine Marks for The New York Times

Within a year, however, Ms. Siddappa’s company transferred her again — this time, to New York. The couple had never been there, but were eager “to enjoy the city living to its fullest,” said Mr. Shanbog, who worked in the video-game industry in India. “We thought, finally we will witness real America.”

On sites like StreetEasy, they saw one-bedrooms for about $1,600, in Inwood and Washington Heights. Last summer, Mr. Shanbog contacted several agents and decided to work with Kimberley Bloomfield of Citi Habitats.

“We had a huge checklist,” he said. Outdoor space was a must, as Mr. Shanbog, now 28, wanted to be able to step outside to smoke.

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The apartment is so small that “if I play a video game, it turns into a bachelor pad,” Mr. Shanbog said. “When we have a conversation, it turns into a couple’s bedroom. When we cook, it turns into a kitchen.”Credit
Katherine Marks for The New York Times

“Without a balcony, I feel like we are stuck within the four walls of a house,” Ms. Siddappa, 33, said.

She would be working from home much of the time, so she wanted a building that had a business center or some kind of common work space. And they were hoping for other amenities as well.

Ms. Bloomfield’s response? In that price range, “there are no amenities,” she said. “Their expectations were way off-base. I sent them pictures of what they could expect. I tried to tell them, but I don’t think they could believe the reality until they saw it.”

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YORKVILLE There was a sleeping loft over the kitchen, and the backyard was boxed in by tall buildings.Credit
Katherine Marks for The New York Times

The kind of place they envisioned didn’t exist within their budget, she told them. “But they had StreetEasy evidence to prove me wrong,” she said, referring to the listings they had found in northern Manhattan. “If you don’t live in New York, you don’t grasp what a long time it takes to go a short distance.”

The couple, who were staying in a Midtown hotel, settled on a budget of around $1,800. Ms. Bloomfield suggested Yorkville, on the far Upper East Side, which they explored and discovered they liked.

Ms. Bloomfield started by showing them a studio with a backyard on East 81st Street, for $1,890. Hearing that it had outdoor space “triggered the imagination for me,” Ms. Siddappa said. But the yard turned out to be unappealing, and surrounded by tall buildings. And the apartment had a sleeping loft, with a ladder, over the kitchen. “It was just not meant for us,” she said.

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YORKVILLE A small one-bedroom, on the sixth floor of a walk-up, was over their budget.Credit
Katherine Marks for The New York Times

They also saw a small one-bedroom, on the sixth floor of a walk-up, on East 80th Street. But the rent was $2,325 a month — way over their budget, which had now risen to $2,250 “and not a penny more,” Ms. Siddappa said.

And the nature of the apartment changes completely, depending on what they’re doing. “If I play a video game, it turns into a bachelor pad. When we have a conversation, it turns into a couple’s bedroom. When we cook, it turns into a kitchen.”

With no outdoor space, he goes out to the sidewalk to smoke, a trip bothersome enough that it is helping him toward his goal of quitting.

Any compromises they have made, however, seem to have been worth it. They have made new friends, and joined Asphalt Green, a nearby sports club where they work out. They also make occasional trips to museums.

And the city is every bit as crowded and exciting as they imagined it would be. “We’re having a blast,” Mr. Shanbog said.

A version of this article appears in print on February 11, 2018, on Page RE12 of the New York edition with the headline: Embracing All the Realities of Big-City Life. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe